Black Magic
by rukia1205
Summary: Have you ever heard of Dark Magic? What about supernatural things? What do you know about them? Natsuki is a rising star in the Fuka Police Headquarter who solves her case based on logic & facts. However, her world is turned upside down when she meets Shizuru. Shizuru lives in a world that can never be defined by logic and facts. What happens when the two meet? ShizNat
1. Chapter 1

The full moon slowly rises up into the clear night sky, providing some form illumination for any night traveler.

Two lone figures could be seen standing over a grave and the sound of shovel pushing into the moist ground could be heard echoing throughout the cemetery. One of the figures was bending over the grave with a shovel in his hand while another had a battery run torchlight in hand.

"Hurry up Seito! It is taking far too long."

"Yeah yeah. It would have been faster if YOU could have helped me dig, which you are not. So stop whining."

"Well, I am not paid to dig up the bodies! I am only paid to identify and locate our potential 'goods'. And it is you people who are responsible for digging and God knows why they choose people like you! So hurry the hell up."

The exchange of words ensued as the pair continued with their job.

The argument came to a stop when a loud 'thud' was heard. The two figures exchanged glance and they could see the excitement in each other's eyes. Yes! Finally! They could now move on to the final stage of extracting the bodies and then be done for the day.

Well, or rather be done for the night, Seito mused as he quicken his pace of digging. To people like him, the night is his day. His job scopes required him to operate at night because his job is something which should never be seen by anyone. A job that could land him in jail but a job that could also earn him a huge income. In this time and day, a man has to do what a man has to do in order to survive. Digging up bodies for _them_ is the only way out for uneducated poor man like him. He has a family to feed and he desperately needs money for his children's education.

"Damn! What the hell is this?!"

Seito's musing was interrupted by his partner's words and his attention was once again brought back to the coffin in the open grave.

This coffin was rather unique compare to the usual coffin he saw thus far. Four nails were partially nailed into the coffin, one at each corner. A red thread was tied from one nail to another such that the red thread encompassed the circumference of the coffin. A piece of yellowish rectangle paper was nailed at the center of coffin.

Seito's partner reached out and wiped the sand off the yellowish paper to get a clearer view of the paper.

"No. Don't take it off, Ichinos." Seito ordered as his partner stretched toward the rectangular paper, eagerly to remove all the unnecessary items to get to the corpse. "Something is wrong with this coffin. I…I don't think we should remove the cover. We better leave it alone because this rectangular paper is no ordinary paper. It is a talisman."

His partner waved off James' concern and reached out for the rectangular paper, torn it off, crushed it and threw it onto the ground.

At the moment the talisman was torn off, a gush of wind blew across the cemetery. Trees rustle and hooting of an owl could be heard breaking the silent of the night.

"Hey, I really mean it. Leave the coffin alone! Something is not right with this coffin."

"Come on dude, stop talking and get this done. They paid us and our job is to supply them with what they want. And stop sprouting nonsense about this coffin being weird. A coffin is a coffin and a dead woman is a dead woman. That's it. Stop being a superstitious country bumpkin. Come on Seito!"

Ichinos snatched the shovel from Seito's hand and struck the tip of the shovel between the gap of the coffin. Using the shovel as a lever, Ichino pushed down the other end of the shovel, lifting the cover of the coffin up and …

A dark blue and black Ducati screeched to a halt in front of a police car. The driver swung her left leg over the sleek machine and alighted from the bike. As the driver straighten up, she pushed the black helmet off her head and thick cascade of never ending long hair escape from the confinement of the helmet.

The face that emerged caught the attention of many passers-by - pale smooth face with a perfect nose and dark green eyes. Her face would have been perfect without the scowl on her face. Well, it was not just her face but her figure as well. The tight leather pants and form fitting black tank top accompanied with a jacket clearly showed off a well proportionate body.

She flicked her hair back with her right hand, tucked the helmet under her left arm and strode into Fuka Police Headquarter.

As she walked into the building towards the lift, the guards stationed at the door saluted her and in return, she nodded to acknowledge their greeting. "She is in a badass mood her. Better not stand in her way" A conclusion the two guards came to after a look on her face.

She alighted at the 5th floor and strode purposefully towards a close door. Without knocking, she turned the knob and marched into the room.

She leaned towards the plump man seated behind and desk and slammed her fist onto the table, making all the stationary on the table jump. "Sakomizu, you better have some damn good reasons to recall me back from my holiday! Damn it!"

Unfazed by her action, Captain Kaiji Sakomizu replied "Is this the way you talk to your supervisor, Natsuki?"

The Afro style hair would look ridiculously on anyone but somehow, it seemed to fit him rather well. Captain Kaiji straightened up, adjusted his round spectacles and said, "Close the door. This is a confidential meeting. AND you might want to greet your supervisor again."

Natsuki went to close the door, in preparation for a confidential meeting between the two of them.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. (Though I wish I do)

Summary:

Have you ever heard of Dark Magic? What do you know about it? Do they really exist in the first place?

Natsuki is a rising star in the Fuka Police Headquater who always solves her case based on logic, facts and evidence. However, her understanding of the world is turned upside down when she meets Shizuru. Shizuru lives in a world that can never be defined by logic and facts. The things she dealt with are beyond scientific understanding. What would happen when the two meet? And it seems that someone wanted Natsuki and Shizuru to meet each other but not for a good reason.

* * *

The scowl on Natsuki's face deepen. Unwillingly, Natsuki stood to attention and said,"My apologies sir! Lt Kugar reporting for duty Sir! "

"Very well Lt Kuga. It is nice to have you back. I hope your short holiday was an enjoyable one.''

At the mention of holiday, Natsuki's face darken. The two weeks of holiday which she managed to accumulate and had planned to enjoy was gone. She had planned to spend the two weeks in bliss, completing her PlayStation game, Mai Otome Z, and stuffing herself with mayonnaise.

This was what she initially planned until her phone started ringing. She had ignored the phone calls at first but the caller proved to be rather insistent. The incessant phone call turned into home visit.

"Kuga Natsuki, I know you are in there! So you better open the door or else you will have to buy a new door soon! Kuga Natsuki!" The banging continues.

Nobody beat Tokiha Mai when it comes to persistency. Not even Natsuki.

Natsuki strode to the door and flung it open and Mai came tumbling in.

''Alright, Tokiha what are you doing outside my house? I am currently on leave. So what the hell are you doing disturbing my peace?"

Mai picked herself up and replied"Oh come on Natsuki, I have known you for so long and we all know what kind of holiday you would just hole up in your room, spend the whole day playing with your Playstation and have mayonnaise for breakfast, lunch and dinner. If this is what you call holiday, then you are definitely sick."

"Oh what the hell. Just tell me whatever you came here for so that I can go back to my game. "

Mai smirked." Unfortunately for you, you are needed in Fuka HQ and Captain has specifically asked for you. It seems that your holiday has come to an end."

And so Natsuki is here in Fuka HQ per request of the Captain.

"Lt Kuga, you are officially tasked to be in charged of this case. This case is rather delicate as it involves one of influential family in Fuka. So make sure you solve this ASAP. Understood?"

"Yes sir!" Natsuki replied as she received the file from Captain

* * *

When Natsuki was back at her table, Mai immediately went up to her and put her arm around Natsuki's shoulder. "Hey Natsuki why did Captain recall you back? Is there some case to be solved? Should I gather everyone?" Mai looked excited by the prospect of having some action.

"Yup, we have another case to solve but not what you expect. Captain specially requested only both you and I to handle this case and no one else. According to him, this is a rather delicate case as it involves some family by the name of Viola... Hmm... Viola family, this sounds familiar. Where have I heard it before..." Natsuki replied absently while flipping through the file.

"What? You don't know about the Viola Family?" Mai was horrified by the fact that Natsuki was clueless about such vital information. "Natsuki, you really need to read up more on the latest news instead of just playing your games."

"Wh...What's wrong with my games! They are good alright!" There was a suspicious tint of redness on Natsuki's cheeks.

"Alright, down puppy. Don't get too agitated. Let me tell you this, Viola family is currently led by Kiyotaro Viola and the Viola Corporation under his leadership has flourished, growing even during the 2008 financial crisis and is currently rank the most profitable Corporation by the Fuka Magazine. The net worth of Viola Corporation is estimated to have reached US$250 billion dollar. Rich enough to buy a nation!"

"Shit. I really hate dealing with rich people! What is Captain thinking when he puts me in charge of this case! Arghh..." Natsuki lamented.

"Oh don't interrupt me. Viola Kiyaotaro has a son. Unfortunately, a car accident 18 years ago claimed the lives of his son and daugther-in-law. And this accident left him with 3 grandsons which he brought up all by himself. These 3 very handsome young man are currently the potential successors of the Viola empire. The eldest of them is Viola Reito, a charismatic and charming leader who has won the hearts of women young and old. The second successor is Viola Takeda who is a sincere and down to earth man. He has gained the confidence of the elders in the Viola Corporation through his hardwork and determination. And the last is Viola Yuiichi...hmmm..." A dreamy look appeared on Mai's face. "Yuiichi...well, he is the youngest of the three and he is or rather was the only married man among the three." Mai gave a dreamy sigh and continued. "He is what you call, the tragic hero in a romance novel. He was married to his childhood sweetheart Munakata Shiho for 1 year before she died during childbirth. And despite being an eligible bachelor now, he has promised to be forever faithful to his wife, never going to marry again. My, what a wonderful guy he is."

"How the hell did you get so much information?"

"Ha! I have a friend who is working in Fuka Publishing is why I know so much. Well, as least more than someone who always lock herself in her bedroom playing games."

"Erhem!" Natsuki coughed into her hand. "Attention, Lt Tokiha!"

"Yes, Ma'am!" Putting jokes aside, Mai stood to attention.

"We will now move to conference room to further our discussion on this case. We will only concentrate on the case. Nothing else! Understood, Tokiha?" Natsuki turned and moved towards the conference room.

"Yes Ma'am!" Mai followed Natsuki into the conference room, with a grin on her face, knowing that Natsuki is all bark and no bite.

"Alright, looking at what we have, it seems that Viola-sama made a phone call to our Police Commissioner last night to request for assistance the investigation of a robbery case. Hmm...Viola-sama's granddaughter-in-law's grave has been robbed...and...what? Someone robbed a grave? Shit! What is the world coming? Robbing a grave. Right." Natsuki frowned as she read through the file.

Mai too, frown when she flipped through the rather thin file. But for a different reason. "Natsuki, the information in the file is rather limited. There is nothing helpful or informative. And the only thing I find helpful is the venue of the crime scene, time which the crime was discovered, who discover the crime and the identity of the 'victim'. It seems that Yuuichi Viola was the one who discovered that his wife's grave was robbed when he visited her grave yesterday morning. Once he realized that the grave was robbed, he informed his grandfather who then call up our Police Commissioner. But the file did not specify what was stolen from the grave."

"Hmm...Alright, Mai, could you send a group of forensic investigators consisting of only Yikino-san and Takumi-kun to the crime scene? Since Captain wants it to be a low profile case, we do not want too many people involve in this. And on our side, it seems that we have to do some leg work. Let's go and pay our Romeo a visit." Natsuki suggested.

* * *

"Kuga Natsuki, I swear this is the last time I am going to sit on your Ducati. Damn it, you are a danger to other other road users!" Mai vowed as she stumbled off the bike. "I always wonder why you have never been stopped by a Traffic Police before and now I know why! It is because nobody DARES to even come close to you!"

"Come on Mai, you are just weak." Natsuki shrugged. She parked her Ducati in an empty parking lot and walked towards a tall building with Mai staggering behind her.

Cold air blew against her face as the glass door to the building slided open to allow Natsuki to enter. A few men in business suit were seen loitering in the lobby. She walked up to the front desk and introduced herself.

"Good afternoon. I am Lt Kuga and this is Lt Tokiha. We are from the Fuka Police Headquarter and we are here to see Yuiichi-sama. Could you inform him of our arrival?" Natsuki took out her badge and showed it to the receptionist.

"Alright Kuga-sama. Please have a seat at the lobby area while I contact Viola-sama now." The young receptionist replied.

Within minutes, the receptionist put down her phone and gave Natsuki and Mai a pleasant smile "Kuga-sama and Mai-sama, Viola-sama would like to invite you to his office on the 21st floor. Please proceed to use the elevator on the left to reach the 21st floor. Thank you and hope you have a nice day ahead."

* * *

Natsuki and Mai stepped out of the elevator and were greeted by Yuiichi's secretary who then directed them to him office. The secretary knocked on the door and gestured them to enter.

As they entered, Natsuki did a quick scan of the the room and then focused her attention on the young man standing behind the table. Viola Yuiichi was dressed in a Gucci black suit consisting of a skinny fit pants and a white long sleeves shirt. The top button of his long sleeves shirt was unbuttoned giving him a formal but casual look. The two button black business jacket accentuated his broad shoulder. His dark blond hair was neatly cropped to give him a smart look.

Without having to look at Mai, Natsuki knew that Mai must be smittened by the young Viola's look.

Yuiichi walked towards them and stretched out his hand for a handshake. "Good afternoon, ladies. I am Viola Yuiichi. How may I assist you?"

Knowing that Mai was completely starstruck, Natsuki decided to take the lead in this investigation. "Good afternoon, Yuiichi-sama. I am Lt Kuga and this is Lt Tokiha. We are from the Fuka Police Headquarter. We understand that a police report is made by Viola Kiyotaro-sama. However we understand that you are the first one who discovers the crime. Could you provide us with more details about this incident?"

"Please take a seat first." Yuiichi gestured to the two chairs in front of his desk. While the two ladies took their seat, Yuiichi went back to his leather chair, sat down and looked at a photo frame placed on his table. It was a picture of his wife, Munakata Shiho.

He took a minute or two to collect his thoughts, "Yesterday was Shiho's death anniversary and I planned to visit her in the morning. However, when I reached her grave, I saw a hole where her coffin was supposed to be. Her coffin was wide open and...and her body was gone." His hand tightened into a fist. "Someone took her body! Damn it!"

Natsuki's eyes sharpen at this statement.

Yuiichi took a deep breath to calm himself. "My apologies ladies."

"It's alright. Do you mean that her corpse was stolen?" Natsuki clarified. Puzzled that anyone would steal a corpse. "Could you tell give us more details? And what time did you reach the cemetery?" Natuski asked.

"Yes. Her body was stolen. I reach the cemetery at around 8am. But when I reached there I saw that her grave was dug open and her body was nowhere in sight. I have gotten my men to search in the nearby area but I just couldn't find her." Yuiichi's voice broke when he spoke the last statement. "I couldn't remember anything else. I only noticed that there was a shovel nearby. Other than that, I can't remember much." Yuiichi rubbed his face with his palm trying to erase the fatigue that had plagued him since yesterday when he found out that his wife's body had been stolen.

"Does the Viola family or Munakata family have any enemies that could have done this?" Natsuki probed further.

"No, I doubt so. Shiho was the only child and her parents died in an air crash when she was 15. And now the Munakata family business is currently a subsidiary of the Viola Corporation." Yuiichi paused before continuing. "As of Viola family, we run a business and we definitely have many competitors. But to call them enemies, it would be too extreme. I can't think of any now."

"I see. Thank you Yuiichi-sama." Natuski turned to look at Mai to check if she had any questions to add. And as expected, Mai was staring at Yuiichi totally oblivious that the conversation had come to an end.

Natsuki gave Mai a jab with her elbow.

"Oh...what? Oh ok, thank you Yuiichi-sama for assisting in our investigation. Do contact me...I meant us if you recall any other details that would help us in our investigation. Here is my contact number." Mai took out her name card and passed it to Yuiichi.

"No I should be the one to say thank you." Yuiichi replied as he guided Mai and Natsuki to the opened door.

"If you don't mind, Yuiichi-sama, I would also like to speak to your grandfather." Natsuki spoke before stepping out of the room.

"Of course. I will make the necessary arrangement." Yuiichi replied before turning to his secretary who was standing outside of the room. "Mary, could you call my grandfather and informed him that Lt Kuga and Lt Mai are here to see him. Thank you."

"Lt Kuga and Lt Mai, please follow me and I will lead you to my grandfather's office."

* * *

As the three of them alighted from the elevator on the 40th floor, the room on the right of the elevator opened. A young lady and an old man with a walking stick stepped out of the room.

"Ara, Oujii-sama, you must be joking. I am still in studying in Garderobe University. It will still be awhile before I graduated. But I promise I will come home more often to have dinner with you. Anyway, you have Reito, Takeda and Yuiichi nii-sama to accompany you right?" The young lady with her back facing the three of them spoke. There were traces of Kyoto accents in her speech.

"Hmp...The three of them? Forget it." The old man stomped his walk stick. "Reito is always out chasing after some socialite and Takeda might as well stay in the office 24/7. As for Yuiichi..."

"Oujii-sama...we have some guest in our midst." Yuiichi interrupted his grandfather rumbling.

The young lady who was talking to the elderly man turned around.

This was not the first time Natsuki saw a beautiful girl. She had seen many but Natsuki was sure that this young lady had surpassed all the rest. Her light brown hair was long and luxuriant . But what really caught her eyes was the young lady's eyes. They were red. Red as a ruby. She was the type that could capture the attention of both men and women alike when she walked down the street, Natsuki concluded

"Ara ara...what do we have here. Two pretty ladies with Yuiichi nii-sama." The young lady spoke up. "So who is my new sister-in-law, Nii-sama?"

"You have not changed much Shizuru. Still like to tease me." Yuiichi stepped forward and gave Shizuru a bear hug. "It has been a while."

"Yes it has been a while." Shizuru returned the hug. The last time they met was one year ago during Shiho's funeral service.

However Shizuru's attention was captured by the blue hair beauty standing next to the red head. Shizuru knew that both guests were pretty but there was something special about this blue hair beauty that Shizuru just couldn't take her eyes off her.

Shizuru walked towards the blue hair beauty and introduced herself. "Since my nii-sama is not going to introduce me, I will do the introduction myself. I am Viola Shizuru. Please to meet you."

Silent. Natsuki did not reciprocate the introduction. She stood there staring at Shizuru.

"Ara, could I have frightened you with my boldness?" Shizuru placed her right hand on her cheeks. "Kanina. I didn't mean to frighten you." The brightness in Shizuru's eyes dim as if her feeling was hurt.

"No no no... I... I don't mean that!" Natsuki stammered when she finally snapped out of her stupor. "Its just that... just that...I...you...I am Lt Kuga Natsuki from the Fuka Police Headquarter."

Natsuki's face turned a bright shade of red and steam was seen coming off Natsuki's head.

"Nice to meet you Nat-su-ki." Shizuru's eyes brighten at Natsuki's words. This girl is just too cute! Shizuru thought.

Mai raised her eyebrows when she heard Natsuki's reply. It was unexpected of Natsuki to act in this manner. Well, the Viola's family seemed to have very good genes, giving each and every one of them such good looks. So maybe that was the reason why we were acting weirdly around them. Mai gave a silent sigh. Yuiichi-sama really loved his wife. You could just see how his eyes soften when he talks about her and how angry he was when someone stole her body.

But there was something that's bugging Mai - who is Viola Shizuru and how is she related to the Viola family. Chie told her that the Viola Family was left with only Viola Kiyotaro, Reito, Takeda and Yuiichi.

"Shizuru, stop teasing people. Lt Kuga is here to help us apprehend the culprit responsible for stealing Shiho's body." Yuiichi interrupted breaking up the conversation between Shizuru and Natsuki.

"Someone stole Shiho-san's corpse? Ara, Oujii-sama, why didn't you tell me about this?" Shizuru turned towards the elder Viola with a questioning look on her face.

"I know you are busy with your school work and so I do not want you to be upset by this. I would want you to just concentrate on your studies." The older Viola explained and then turned to Natsuki and Mai, "Lt Kuga and Lt Tokiha, please follow me into my office."

With that the three of them entered into the older Viola's office. And as the door closed behind Natsuki, she turned and took one last glance at the red eye beauty.

* * *

Note:

My aim is to publish one chapter every fortnight. I am currently having a one week holiday so hopefully I can write more chapters within this one week.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. (Though I wish I do)

Summary:

Have you ever heard of Dark Magic? What do you know about it? Do they really exist in the first place?

Natsuki is a rising star in the Fuka Police Headquater who always solves her case based on logic, facts and evidence. However, her understanding of the world is turned upside down when she meets Shizuru. Shizuru lives in a world that can never be defined by logic and facts. The things she dealt with are beyond scientific understanding. What would happen when the two meet? And it seems that someone wanted Natsuki and Shizuru to meet each other but not for a good reason.

* * *

Terms:

**Joss sticks:** are a type of incense. As the name suggests, it is shaped like a stick where you can light up the tip of the stick and it will burn by itself until the lower end where it is made of non-combustible material. In some Asian countries, people traditionally burn joss stick before an Asian religious image, idol, buddha statue, ancestral altar or shrine. But some some joss stick burning rituals (and the prayers that come with it) do not need to be done in front of religious images. They can be burned before anything without limits; like in front of a door, or open window as an offering. In some Chinese tradition, people would offer joss sticks as a form of food for the deceased to thank them and/or appease them. It is said that the ghost of the deceased can only eat by smelling the scent coming from the burning joss sticks. The joss sticks are burnt in odd number - one, three or five - depending on the situation.

**Joss paper:** is also known as **ghost money. **The ghost money is perceived as a currency for transaction used by the spirits of the deceased in the afterlife. It is sheets of paper (commonly cream white in color; it may also be red or yellow in color) with red printed words on it. The joss paper is burnt as offerings and such practice is common in traditional Chinese religious. The joss papers are also burned in traditional Chinese funerals, to ensure that the spirit of the deceased has lots of money in the afterlife.

* * *

As the door closed behind her, Natsuki turned to take one last glance at the red eye beauty. Natsuki blushed once again when she saw that Shizuru-san was smiling and waving her hand at her. "Damn! This is bad! Why am I blushing every time I look her?" Natsuki thought.

Mai coughed into her hand to get Natsuki's attention.

"Good afternoon, Viola-sama. I am Lt Tokiha and this is Lt Kuga. We are from the Fuka Police Headquarter. We understand that you have made a police report regarding a robbery case. Could you provide us with more details about this incident?"

Viola Kiyotaro slowly walked towards his chair, his back slightly hunched from old age. "Ladies, please take a seat." As Natsuki and Mai took their seat, the Viola Kiyotaro took a sip of his tea and sigh, "My grandson called me yesterday morning at around 8 plus 9am to tell him that Shiho's grave has been disturbed and that someone took her corpse. He then asked me for manpower to search the nearby area for any traces of the robbery or Shiho's corpse. However, the search is rather futile, which is why I sought the help of Fuka Police as you people would have the expertise in this area." Viola Kiyotaro rubbed his throbbing temple feeling a serious migraine coming.

"Does the Viola family have any enemies that could possibly carry out such action?" Natsuiki was getting frustrated. So far, they had nothing important that could hint about the reason for the crime. A frown began to form on her face.

"Hmm...none that I could think of. In business we generally have our own code of conduct. We do not use such underhand means to take revenge on each other's family members. And our tough competitors are rarely the type that would use this method to attack us." Kiyotaro answered.

"I see. Thank you, Viola-sama. We really appreciate your help. Please contact us if you recall anything of importance that could help us with the case." Mai stood up, signalling the end of the conversation.

"No, I should be the one say thank you. Shiho is a really nice girl. Unfortunately, she died too young. I sincerely hope that you could help our family apprehend the person responsible for causing such pain to my family."

* * *

Mai and Natsuki stepped out of the building, both deep in thought. It seemed that they had hit a dead end. The interviews with both young and old Viola shaded little light to this crime.

Just then, Mai's handphone vibrated. It was a message from her brother Takumi.

"Hi sis, just to let Natsuki-san and you know, we went to the crime scene and got back some items for examination. The results should be out within 1-2 days." Mai showed the message to Natsuki.

"Alright, I guess we will go back to the HQ first and wait for Takumi-kun's report." Natsuki decided, hoping that there will be some evidence that could shed some light into this mystery.

* * *

The sun slowly sank into the horizon as the day transcend into night. The sky slowly darkened as darkness slowing crept in but some hint of light could still be seen at the horizon. However, a different form of darkness had descended onto this stretch of forest.

With what little light that was left, it was possible to see a man running through the forest. The sound of the man's panting could be heard echoing through the silent forest.

The man looked like he was escaping from someone. Or maybe something. Because for every few steps he took he would glance back, with a look of desperation etched on his face, as if checking for something.

He ran on for a while until he stumbled and fell flat on the floor. He quickly picked himself up, ignoring the dirt on his shirt and jeans and prepared to take flight again.

A strong gust of wind blew past.

The man held up his hand to his face to block the wind. When he looked up, his face paled. He seemed to have seen something that frightened him. He took a step backwards followed another, shaking his head slowly.

"No, please no. I swear it wasn't intentional. I didn't mean to offend you. I am so sorry. Sorry..." The man sobbed. As he walked backward, he tripped and fell, landing on his backside.

He shuffled backwards while seated, until his back hit a tree. "Please! Spare me..." He pleaded.

He then kneeled on the floor and kowtowed, "Please! I have a wife who is currently pregnant. She needs me. Spare me and I promise I will never do such things again and...and I will always burn joss paper and joss stick for you. So please!" He begged.

Just when you would think that he would continue begging, he suddenly launched up from where he was, raised his arm and swung a fist sized rock at something that was in front of him. Apparently, the man found the rock on the ground when he kowtowed just now.

"Argh! Die! Die! Die!" The man screamed as he repeatedly swung the rock at someone or something in front of him.

Again and again, he swung the rock. This lasted for several minutes before he finally stopped.

"You think you can get me?" The man panted. "Haha...you think so? Haha..." The man laughed out loud while trying to catch his breath. The man's laughter echoed through the silent forest.

The man then threw the rock onto the ground, turned and walked away, leaving the rock behind.

As the man walked out of the dark forest, the rock that was left behind turned red as blood stain appeared on the rock. Second later, a pool of blood was seen forming around the rock.

* * *

"What is the situation her, Akira-kun." Natsuki asked.

"Kuga." Akira nodded at the newcomer. "It looks like we have a homicidal case on our hands."

"Shit. Any other information?" Natsuki asked.

"Yeah. The time of death is currently estimated to be 6pm-8pm yesterday evening. Lucky for us, the victim has his identification card with him. So it makes it easier for us to identify him and contact his family. The name of the victim is Hanakari Seito_(refer to chapter 1 for who Seito is)_." Akira paused and glanced at the crime scene. White number cards were placed on the floor to mark important area and a few forensic investigators were seen wearing a pair of plastic gloves bending over areas in the crime scene. Her eyes focus on Takumi who was currently picking up a rock carefully with his glove cladded hand.

"Our forensic team is currently combing the crime scene to extract any possible evidence and the rock which Takumi-kun is holding now was found near the victim. There is blood stain on the rock but we need to send the rock back to the lab to determine if there are any fingerprints on it. And further analysis is needed to determine the possible causes of death."

"Alright." Natsuki nodded and her frown deepened as she asked "Do you know who found the victim?"

"The old man over there was the one who first discover the body." Akira pointed to the old man standing a distance away, talking to a policeman in uniform.

Natuski nodded her head at Akira before walking towards the policeman and the old man.

"I will take over from here." Natsuki thanked the policeman and took over the clipboard from him. "Good afternoon Sir, I am Lt Kuga and I will be taking over this investigation." Natsuki informed the old man and took a quick glance at the clipboard. "Alright. Ojii-san, why were you in this forest?"

The old man cleared his throat before speaking, "I was taking a walk with my dog. My house is just next to this stretch of forest and we normally take a stroll in this area after my breakfast."

"Alright. What time did you discover the body?" Natsuki continued asking as she scribbled down the man's statement.

"I think I found his body at about 9.15am." The man answered.

"How did you find the body?"

"I was walking Kong, that's my dog's name, when he suddenly started barking and kind of went crazy. He was pulling against the leash trying to run towards the direction of the erm...victim. And so I followed his lead and that is when I saw the victim lying face down on the ground with a pool of blood around him. Though I couldn't see his face but I knew something was not right here and so I immediately called the medic and the police."

"I see. Alright, thank you Ojii-san, for assisting us in our investigation." Natsuki thanked the old man and gestured the uniform policemen to guide the old man out of the crime scene.

* * *

"Shit! I really hate this." Natsuki collapsed onto a chair in the police HQ. She placed her arm over her eyes as she recalled the look on the face of victim's wife when she told the wife about the death of her husband.

With the address given by Akira, Natsuki travelled to a small village located at the fringe of Fuka City. She stood outside a house with a uniform policeman and looked at the small house, debating how to deliver the unfortunate news to the family members. The house was not in the best condition but she could tell that the owner of the house had done her best to keep the place clean and proper. Flowers were planted in front of the house to make the house looked more livelier and it was obvious that the plants are well taken care of.

Just as Natsuki was about to knock on the door, a voice sounded behind her. "Good afternoon, can I help you?"

Natsuki turned around and saw a young lady carrying large grocery bags in each hand and a young little girl clutching on the lady's skirt and attempting to hide behind her mother. Dots of perspiration appeared on her forehead.

"Good afternoon, I am Lt Kuga. I am looking for Hanakari Seito' wife. Do you know where I can find her?" Natsuki flashed her ID card.

"I...I am Ganju Inoue, Seito's wife." The lady replied. The lady attempted to wet her dry lips with her tongue. She had a sense of foreboding ever since yesterday night. She knew that something was not right when she saw the policeman standing outside her house together with the blue hair lady.

"I see, could we have a talk with you in your house?" Natsuki asked. She would not want to inform the lady of such news outside the house.

Inoue couldn't remember if she had kept the ice-cream she bought for her daughter in the fridge. Because she was in a daze. She knew something was wrong as she sat on the sofa and stared into the eyes of the blue hair policewoman.

Natsuki took a deep breath and said, "I am so sorry madam. Your husband Hanakari Seito was found dead this morning. We would need to ask you some questions."

Dead.

Inoue's 'eyes rolled back as she fainted onto the sofa.

"Kaa-san...kaa-san..." The little girl dashed out of the room towards her Inoue...

The images in Natsuki's mind faded as she saw herself, a much younger blue hair little girl, kneeling next to another blue hair lady who was lying on the floor in a pool of blood. "Okaa-san...Okaa-san...Wake up...wake up.." The blue hair little girl begged.

"Kuga...Kuga...Hey Kuga..." Akira waved her hand in front of Natsuki's face as she tried to catch Natsuki's attention.

Natsuki brought her attention back to the Akira, rubbing the back of her neck, trying to erase the discomfort brought about by her memory. "Akira-kun, my apologies. Any information from the forensic team?"

"Yup. A skull fracture leaves Hanakri Seito brain dead but it was the loss of blood from the fracture that really killed him. And the blood stain rock found near Seito is identified as the weapon that caused the fracture. And you know what?" Akira paused before continuing, "The murderer is sloppy. The fingerprints found on the rock belong to this man name Tsumugiya Ichinose. We have run a check on this guy and he does have a long list of record. He was once jailed for 18 months for breaking and entering into a private property, 10 month for small time robbery and fine for drink driving and other petty crimes. But so far, nothing as serious as murder. We also found some shoeprints on the forest floor belonging to a man wearing a 9-9.5 inch shoe. We could get Ichinose in and see if Ichinose's shoe size matches what we found. What about your side? Any information on the victim?"

"Yeah, there is but not much." Natsuki took out her notebook and flipped through it. "Hanakari Seito was retrenched 6 months ago when the company he worked for went into restructuring. Ever since then he had been unemployed. However, it seems that Seito took on a lucrative job about 3 months ago as he began bringing home sufficient money to for the family to live a good life. Seito never told his wife anything about his job except that his job required him to work at night. However, according to his wife, he has been acting rather weird the past few days before he was murdered. In fact during the past few days, he had not been working. He had locked himself in his room most of the time and had drunk himself into oblivion most of the time. Occasionally his wife could hear him mumbling apologies and would promise that he would never do it again. But no matter how Seito's wife probed, he never told his wife anything."

"I see. We have more questions rather than answers on our hand." Akira replied.

"Yeah I agree. First, Seito seem to be doing some shady job and he was damn secretive about it, not even telling his wife. So the question is what job he was doing. Second, something is likely to have happened to cause Seito to behave in such a weird manner. But we don't know what caused him to behave in such manner. And third, how is Seito related to Ichinose." Natsuki analysed the case and listed out the queries while Akira jolted down the questions. "And lastly, why did Ichinose kill Seito."

"Well, I guess the Ichinose could give us some answers." Akira suggested

"Alright, Akira-kun, track down Tsumugiya Ichinose and bring him in for questioning. I would like to solve this case ASAP and gave the Hanakari family an answer." Natsuki commanded.

"Yes madam!" Akira saluted. But before Akira moved off to gather the rest of the team members, she suddenly recalled that she was also looking for Natsuki for another reason.

"By the way Kuga, do you know where Mai is? Takumi has been looking for her. He tried to call her but she is not picking up"

"Mai? Oh she was in conference room 1 analyzing another case for me so she is currently off this homicidal case. But I will help you pass the message to her." Natsuki replied.

"He is one busy man." Natsuki commented as she flipped through the file brought back by Mai.

Takumi had finished carrying out test on the evidence brought back from Munakata Shiho's grave. And out of the few evidence brought back, Takumi and Yukino found sample of fingerprints on the handle of the shovel and other information that might be helpful. And all these information were in the file which Mai and Natsuki were holding.

"Yup. Our Ichinose really is a busy and careless man. Leaving his fingerprints everywhere." Mai agreed. "I heard from Takumi that he is also involved in a suspected murder case because he too left his fingerprints on the weapon."

"Yup. He is involved. Akira-kun is bringing Ichinose back for questioning. Maybe he could shed some light to these two cases." Natsuki replied.

"Agreed. There is a high probability that these two cases are related. If you read on page 5, there is a second set of fingerprints on the shovel and ..."

Mai's sentence was cut off by a shout coming from outside the conference room.

"Hey, I told you I am innocent! You hear me! I want a lawyer! Hey!"

Natsuki opened the door and saw a man in handcuffs being led into a small room by Akira and

"Well, he could our man." Natsuki commented and started walking towards the interrogation room.

* * *

"Shizuru, I know that this is difficult but could you help me with this once more?"

"Yuiichi nii-sama, it is not because I don't want to help you. We have tried it before and Shiho's spirit did not react to my summon. In fact, she might have moved on. Isn't this what you would have hoped for Shiho?"

"Yes. But..." Yuiichi argued. "But...it is just that I have a feeling in me that she...her spirit is not gone yet. I knew it. Please Shizuru, Onii-sama begs you." Yuiichi kneeled down in front of Shizuru.

"Nii-sama!"

"Please Shizuru. Nii-sama begs you."

Shizuru closed her eyes and gave a heavy sigh. "Alright. I will carry out a summon."

"Thank you Shizuru."

"Don't thank me yet. I cannot guarantee that she will respond to my summon. She might as well have reincarnated for all we know. Meet me tonight at 12 midnight at my house for the ceremony."

* * *

Hi guys, thank you so much for those who have leaved a comment and especially to Romanica. Your encouragement is what keeps me going. Thank you.

As some of you all would have noted I am late in publishing this chapter. My apologies regarding this. I am afraid that there will also be delay in the subsequent chapters. Honestly, I will not be able to keep to my promise to upload new chapter every fortnight. Unfortunately, my grandma is diagnosed with cancer, the 4th or what some would call the last stage. The doctor gave her 6 more months to live and I am planning to spend as much time as possible keeping my grandma company and make her smile! :)

But rest assure that I will not abandon this story. I WILL complete this story.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. (Though I wish I do)

Summary:

Have you ever heard of Black Magic? What do you know about it? Do they really exist in the first place?

Natsuki is a rising star in the Fuka Police Headquater who always solves her case based on logic, facts and evidence. However, her understanding of the world is turned upside down when she meets Shizuru. Shizuru lives in a world that can never be defined by logic and facts. The things she dealt with are beyond scientific understanding. What would happen when the two meet? And it seems that someone wanted Natsuki and Shizuru to meet each other but not for a good reason.

* * *

Natsuki and Mai took a quick look at each other, nodded their heads as if a common decision had been made, and entered into the interrogation room.

"Thanks Akira-kun, Mai and I will take over from here." Natsuki stepped into the room and informed Akira.

"Yes, Lt Kuga!" Akira replied before passing Mai and Natsuki a file each and left the interrogation room.

Mai took a seat nearest to the door while Natsuki positioned herself behind Mai, with her arms crossed, leaning against the wall.

Tsumugiya Ichinose was huge man, reaching a height of 7"2. But nobody would call him a handsome man. His eyes were sunken from long time drinking and his nose was crooked from the many fights he was involved with.

He was currently seated in an uncomfortable plastic chair, too small for his size. Despite the uncomfortable chair, he was slouching on the seat with his arm hanging over the back of the chair and a smirk on his face.

Mai ignored his smirk and took her time flipping through the file while taking occasional glance at Ichinose.

On the other side of the wall, Natsuki kept her expression stony and her cold gaze on Ichinose.

The silence lengthened as Natsuki continued to stare intently at him.

And Ichinose's attempt to hold Natsuki's stare faltered as he grew more and more uncomfortable under her gaze. Her emerald eyes were direct and sharp. So sharp that you feel that she might have looked deep into you and see the things you would rather keep hidden.

Ichinose started to fidget nervously on the chair and his eyes began to wander around the room, looking at anything but the two women in front of him. He straightened up before hunching his back and clasped his hands tightly between his legs.

It seemed that the silence was too much to bear or maybe it was the frigid stare from the blue hair woman who forced Ichinose to break the silence.

"What...what do you...do you want from me?" Ichinose stammered.

Mai smiled and replied "That depends on what you have for us, Tsumugiya Ichinose. Now tell us, what were you doing on last Friday night, 20th March 20XX?"

Ichinose's face pale upon hearing Mai's question.

"Haha...what...what...do you think. Of course, I am erm...out drink with my friends at Otome Club House. We boys are having a boys' night out. Come on, what is wrong with a bit of fun on our night out?"

In an instance, Natsuki straightened up from the wall and leaned towards Ichinose, grabbing him by his collar. "Don't give me such shit Tsumugiya. We all know what happened on that night." Natsuki said and stared right into Ichinose's eyes before continuing, "You met up with Hanakari Seito and killed him!"

"What! What...NO! No, I...Seito is dead?"

"Don't fuck with us, Tsumugiya!" Natsuki pulled Ichinose up by his collar. "We have sufficient evidence to prove that you murdered Hanakari Seito. We have your fingerprints on the weapon!"

"No! No... I...I really didn't kill anyone!"

"Now, now... Kuga, let's hear what Tsumugiya has to say. It seems that he might not be the murderer. Let's hear his side of the story." Mai interrupted, playing the role of a good cop.

"Tsk...Like hell he will! I say we put him in jail now since all the evidence suggests that he killed Hanakari Seito! He is a fucking liar!" Natsuki argued. Years of working together had allowed them to read each other's' mind easily. They are going to use the good cop bad cop routine on Ichinose.

"What?" His pale face turned a shade whiter. "No! No, I swear I didn't kill him! I swear!" Ichinose pleaded. "I... I will tell you the truth. But please...please you have to protect me. Protect me from her." He turned to Mai, the only good cop out of the two whom he hoped could help him. "I...I don't want to die...So please, I would tell you anything as long as you keep me safe." His hands clenched into tight fist clearly showing his agitation.

This case seemed more complex than they thought. Natsuki and Mai exchanged a look.

Mai turned to Ichinose and gave him a reassuring smile before looking at Natsuki again. "Kuga, I think we should really hear him out."

"Tsk...Whatever..." Natsuki gave in and let go of Tsumugiya. "Listen, Tsumugiya, I am warning you, you better tell the truth. We could put you in jail immediately given the evidence we have." Natsuki threatened, playing the perfect role of the bad cop.

"Tell us Tsumugiya, where were you last Friday and what were you doing at that time?" Mai asked.

"I... I will tell you everything but first I need your assurance that you will ensure my safety. I'm afraid that I might die just like Seito." Ichinose attempted to fight for his safety.

Mai turned to look at Natsuki.

"Fine. I will guarantee your safety as long as you are telling us the truth." Natsuki promised.

The interrogation took longer than expected as Natsuki finally dragged her tired body out of the interrogation room. "Akira-kun, could I trouble you to bring Tsumugiya Ichinose into one of the empty cell? He is going to assist us in our future investigation."

"Fuuuu…This is crazy Mai." Natsuki lamented as she collapsed into the chair in the conference room. "I am speechless."

"Yeah I know what you mean." Mai could feel a migraine coming up soon. "Let's try to consolidate what we have now. Well at least we have more information now than we first started."

"Right…" Natsuki sat up and walked toward the huge white board at the front of the conference room. "Let's see. According to Tsumugiya Ichinose, Hanakari Seito and he were co-workers. Tsumugiya is the brain behind this. He would search for potential graves to be dug and Hanakari would be the one to dig up the remains and then pass them to Tsumugiya who would then sell the dead bodies to the client."

"Yup, according to Tsumugiya, clients, normally parents would approach him, asking him to look for a 'wife' for their deceased son. This is so that their deceased son would have a wife for company in the netherworld. And so Tsumugiya would randomly pick a grave of a deceased female and asked Hanakari to dig it up. He would recreate a fake profile for the deceased female and sell the remains to the clients. After which he conduct a ceremony to marry the deceased male and female. Tsumigya call this wedding the deceased." Mai elaborated.

"Hmm…wedding the deceased? I have never heard of it before." Natsuki commented.

"Neither have I. And this brings us to the next important person – Munakata Shiho."

"Yes, Munakata Shiho, granddaughter-in-law of Viola-sama." Natsuki wrote Munakata Shiho's name on the whiteboard and drew two arrows pointing to Tsumugiya and Hanakari's name. "Tsumugiya admitted that they stole her remain and planned to sell it to a client. But…." A frown appeared on Natsuki's face.

"Yes, here is the but…things would be simpler if it stops here." Mai agreed. "Tsumugiya mentioned that Munakata Shiho's grave is weird. That it was sealed with yellow talismans and red threads, something which you don't see on the normal coffin."

"Hmm… And according to Tsumugiya, Hanakari had tried to stop him from opening Munakata's grave but failed. And so by opening Munakata's grave, Tsumugiya and Hanakari earned the wrath of Munakata….And…and thereafter, Munakata's ghost starts haunting them, trying to kill them. I can't quite believe this." Natsuki shook her head in disbelief.

"Yeah so do I. And Tsumugiya suggested that Hanakari could have been killed by Munakata Shiho's spirit." Mai added. "But judging from Tsumugiya's facial and body expression, he seems to be telling the truth."

"I see your point Mai. But it is hard for us to accept that a ghost killed a man and is now attempting to kill another. There is no evidence to proof that. He even claimed that he was attacked by Munakata Shiho's ghost at Fuuka Forest Reserve, leading him to defend himself using a stone…." Natsuki paused in the middle of her sentence.

"Hey wait a minute! Fuuka Forest Reserve… Fuuka Forest Reserve… It is where we found Hanakari Seito's body as well right? And if you recall, Hanakari died from blood loss due to a blow to his head. And the stone found next to Hanakari's body is suspected to be the weapon." Natsuki pointed out. She then wrote the name 'Fuuka Forest Reserve' on the whiteboard and drew two arrows, one pointing to Hanakari Seito's name and another to Tsumugiya's. "And if you remember, the forensic team manages to identify Tsumugiya's fingerprints on the stone and all other evidence pointed towards Tsumugiya as the murderer."

"So what are you trying to suggest? That Tsumugiya Ichinose murder Hanakari Seito and tried to frame it on a ghost to avoid getting caught? That the stone used by Tsumugiya Ichinose to 'fend' off the ghost is in fact the weapon used to kill Hanakari Seito?" Mai suggested.

"Probably." Natsuki said. "Mai, could you help me check the interrogation record for the date which Tsumugiya was 'attacked' by Munakata's ghost?

"25th March 20XX evening" Mai replied.

"Alright great. What time and date did the coroner predicts Hanakari's death?"

"Give me a minute. Let me flip through the records." Mai answered. "Got it! Hanakari is suspected to be killed between 4pm to 8pm on 25th March 20XX!"

"Exactly. So in another word, it is likely that both Hanakari Seito and Tsumugiya Ichinose were at Fuuka Forest Reserve at around the same time but Tsumugiya is the only one walking out of the Reserve alive." Natsuiki summarized.

"So this is another evidence to prove that Tsumugiya Ichinose killed Hanakari Seito." Mai concluded.

"Yes." Natsuki agreed "And very likely, Tsumugiya is lying through his teeth"

Natsuki glanced at her watch. "Shit. It is getting late. Why don't we go home first, have a good rest and come back tomorrow to discuss this? Anyway, Tsumugiya is going to show us where he hide Munakata Shiho's remain."

"Hmm…oh my gosh! It is that late?" Mai exclaimed.

"Yup. So let's get moving Lieutenant Tokiha."

* * *

Time: 00:00

Venue: Shizuru's terrace house

The 3 storey building bought by Shizuru was built at the fringe of the city, surrounded by trees; giving Shizuru her much needed privacy, with the nearest neighbour 2km down the road. And that was the reason why Shizuru like this place so much. She can carry out her rituals without much interference and questions from nay nosy neighbours.

"Like I say in the afternoon, I can't guarantee that Shiho will respond to my summon. So don't your hopes up, Yuiichi Nii-sama." With that, Shizuru turned to the table on her left.

The 1 meter by 1.5 meter table was covered from front to back with a piece of yellow cloth and different items were placed on top of it. Three hard boiled eggs were placed in front of the three burning joss sticks on the table and a porcelain bowl filled with glutinous rice were placed on the right side of the table together with a hand bell, a wooden sword and a stack of yellow talisman. In addition to that, a pair of red candles with ancient curving was set burning on the table - one on the left and the other on the right.

Yuuichi never know what those items were for and Shizuru never once explained it to him. But it never bothered him. All he is concerned about now is Shiho.

He watched as Shizuru picked up a handful of glutinous rice and threw it across the table such that the rice was scattered across the table. She then picked up the wooden sword and wielded it around before piercing the sword into the stack of talisman. Using the wooden sword, Shizuru brought one talisman to the candle, allowing the talisman to catch fire.

As the talisman burnt, Shizuru chanted, "North, South, East, West, Guardian of the spirits, hear my command. Bring Munakata Shiho to me. I command you, Guardian of the spirits, bring Munakata Shiho to my presence!"

Silence ensued.

"I command you once again, Guardian of the spirits, bring Munakata Shiho to my presence! Shiho, if you hear my command, come to us! Munakata Shiho, hear my command and appear before me!"

Silence was the only answer to Shizuru's command.

Shizuru sighed as she put down her wooden sword. "Yuuichi Nii-sama, Shiho is not responding to my summon. She might have..."

Before Shizuru could complete her sentence, a strong gush of wind blew by, forcing Shizuru and Yuiichi to shield their eyes from strength of the wind.

As the wind died down, a faint appearance of what appeared to be human manifested itself in front of the table.

A young lady wearing white appeared as the faint appearance came into focused.

"Shiho! Shiho, is that you?" Yuiichi rushed forward trying to embrace the lady but failed as his hands simply slipped through her. Yuiichi turned to Shizuru for help.

"You won't be able touched her. She is a spirit now but you can talk to her. She can hear you. But be quick as she won't be able to maintain her appearance for long." Shizuru explained.

Yuiichi nodded and turned towards Shiho, his eyes filled with tears. "Shiho, Shiho...I...I really miss you, Shiho. My life is empty with you. Talk to me Shiho. Tell me, do you miss me, Shiho? I do miss you, you know." Tears trickled down his face.

"Onii-chan...Onii-chan, don't cry. Don't cry. My Onii-chan should be happy." Shiho raised her arms and attempted to wipe away the tears on Yuiichi's face. But the tears fell through her hands. "I do. I really do miss you lots."

"Remember how you promise to be with me forever and always, Onii-chan?" Shiho asked.

"Yes, yes. I remember Shiho."

"But I am dead now. You can't be with me now." Shiho stared longingly at Yuiichi, her fingers trying to caress his face. "You can't be with me now but you can DIE!"

Immediately, Shiho's face contorted in anger and she tightened her fingers around Yuiichi's neck. "Die Onii-chan! Die so that you can be with me!"

Shiho's white dress dyed a bloody red and the aura surrounding her turned dark and deadly. Her hairband loosen and her pink hair fell into disarray. There was a crazed look on her face.

Yuiichi whimpered in pain as her nails lengthen and pierced into his neck.

"Yuiichi Nii-sama!" Immediately Shizuru took her sword and directed it towards Shiho.

"NO Shizuru! Don't hurt her!" The command stopped Shizuru in mid-step.

"Kanina Shiho. It might hurt a bit." Shizuru thrust the sword into the ground and brought her right hand up in front of her face. Then she arranged her fingers such that all her fingers are bent inwards to the palm except the forefinger and middle finger pointing upwards.

"Kiyohime lend me your power. Assault!" Shizuru pointed her fingers at Shiho and a red beam of light shot out from her fingers towards Shiho.

"Ahhh..." Shiho screamed in pain. Despite the pain, Shiho stubbornly maintained her grip on Yuiichi's neck.

"Shi...Shiho...let...let go Shiho.."

"Munakata Shiho! Let go of Yuiichi Nii-sama, I command you! Let go of him NOW! The next attack might kill you!"

"N...no...Shi..." It was getting harder for Yuiichi to breathe as he struggled to loosen Shiho's grip on him. "I lov...ve.. you. Let... go..."

"Viola, Viola Yuiichi! Die! Viola die! Die with me!"

"Stubborn ghost! Kiyohime! Lend me your power. Assault!" A red beam of light, this time a darker shade, shot towards Shiho.

A piercing scream and Shiho loosen her grip on Yuiichi as she was flung to the far end of the rooftop by the beam of light.

Yuiichi collapsed onto the floor, gasping for breath.

Seeing Shiho was writhing in pain, Yuiichi struggled to stand up and walk towards her. "Shiho, are you ok?"

"Get the hell away from me Viola! I would kill you soon!" Shiho shot Yuiichi a vicious look that stopped Yuiichi in his path before stepping off the roof and disappeared into the thin air.

"Shiho!" Yuiichi attempted to follow. But Shizuru held him back.

"Don't! Don't follow her, Nii-sama. Just before she disappeared, I shot a tracking talisman onto her back. We can track her whereabouts. And there is something very wrong with her."

"Oh god, Shizuru, what happen? Why did Shiho become like this? Help me Shizuru."

"Let's go in and treat your wound and I will explain everything to you."

"Shizuru, what happen to Shiho? Did some...something happened to her to cause her to react in this manner?" The idea that something bad might have happened to Shiho set Yuiichi into a panic.

"Calm down Nii-sama. I will treat your wound first and then explain everything to you."

"Wound?" Yuiichiii wondered. "There are no cuts on my body."

"Look into the mirror. Did you see black handprints around your neck?" Shizuru passed Yuiichi a small mirror.

"Shiho did this?"

"Yes. Spirits or ghosts are strong in negative energy call Yin energy while human tends to have stronger positive energy call Yang energy. But a vengeful ghost has more Yin energy than other normal ghost. And ghost or spirits generally do not have a physical form. So it is impossible for them to touch human and vice versa. As you recall earlier on, it is impossible for you to hug her. But when a ghost turns vengeful, gathering enough yin energy, it has the power to move things on will and even give itself a physical form to touch things. And this is what happened to Shiho just now. Just look at the color of her dress. It is red. Red signifies vengeance and anger. She has gathered sufficient vengeance to make her powerful enough to kill. And when she grabbed you by the throat just now, she has 'burnt' you with her Yin energy. Though it doesn't hurt now but later on when the yin energy spreads through your body, that is when the trouble begins. As I have said earlier on, ghosts contain more Yin energy and they are also attracted to objects that are Yin in nature. So the stronger Yin energy in your body will attract unnecessary ghost and harm will befall you." Shizuru explained. "Take this pack here and paste it onto your neck for 7 consecutive days, 3 hours per day. No one day should you miss pasting on the pack. This pack here contains glutinous rice power which will absorb the unnecessary Yin energy from your body."

"I see…Thanks Shizuru." Yuiichi paused before continuing. "But what about Shiho? What happened to her? Why did she become a vengeful ghost? Can you help her, Shizuru?"

"I don't have the answer for you now. But I will find out." Shizuru narrowed her eyes as she recalled the incident just now. "And you shouldn't be worried about her. You should be more worried about yourself. I suspect she might come back to look for you again. Though not so soon as I have just injured her sufficiently for her to take at least 3 days to recover. Now take this talisman as well. It will protect you and prevent her from hurting you. Never lose this."

Shizuru handed Yuiichi a red colour rectangular shape talisman.

"Alright. Thank you so much Shizuru. I won't know what to do without you." Yuiichi gave Shizuru a smile.

"You are my brother after all, Yuiichi Nii-sama."

* * *

"Alright, Tsumugiya, which part of Fuuka Forest Reserved did you buried Munakata Shiho's remain?" Akira asked.

"There is a river following across the Reserve and next to the river, there is a Rain tree. I hid her remains ther."

"Alright then, bring us to there." Akira commanded as she led a handcuffed Tsumugiya Ichinose into Fuuka Forest Reserve with 2 other uniform policemen standing at each side of Tsumugiya Ichinose to prevent him from running. Mai and Natsuki followed behind.

The group travelled for a while before stopping under a rain tree.

"This is the place where I hid her remains."

"You are sure this is the spot? You better don't lie to us." Akira asked.

"Yes, I didn't lie to you. This is where I hid her remains after digging it up from her grave." Tsumugiya nodded his head. "And..and maybe I can be free from her if I hand it over to the police." Tsumugiya said hopefully.

"Alright, dig up the area." Akira gestured to the two uniform police.

The two policemen dug for the remains while Mai, Natsuki and Akira watched by the side and Tsumugiya standing between Mai and Natsuki.

"Ara ara, would you all be hunting for treasure, policeman-san?"

* * *

Omake:

A young lady wearing white appeared as the faint appearance came into focused.

"Shiho! Shiho, is that you?" Yuiichi rushed forward trying to embrace the lady but failed as Shiho side stepped away from Yuiichi.

"Go away you stupid ass." Shiho hissed in disdain and turned to Shizuru with puppy eyes. "Shizuru-Chan!" Shiho squealed and ran towards Shizuru hugging her arms. "I missed you so so much! Why did you not summon me?"

"See, Yuiichi Nii-sama." Shizuru turned and said helplessly to a speechless Yuiichi. "We should not have summoned her. Next time, find someone else to help you. I don't want my Natsuki to be angry with me. "


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. (Though I wish I do)

Summary:

Have you ever heard of Black Magic? What do you know about it? Do they really exist in the first place?

Natsuki is a rising star in the Fuka Police Headquater who always solves her case based on logic, facts and evidence. However, her understanding of the world is turned upside down when she meets Shizuru. Shizuru lives in a world that can never be defined by logic and facts. The things she dealt with are beyond scientific understanding. What would happen when the two meet? And it seems that someone wanted Natsuki and Shizuru to meet each other but not for a good reason.

* * *

"Ara ara, would you all be hunting for treasure, policeman-san?"

Natsuki turned and saw the light brown just beauty standing behind them with a smile on her face. She was wearing a polo tee with a bermuda shorts and a track shoes, giving her a sporty look.

"A very good morning to everyone and Natsuki." Shizuru greeted everyone and turned to Natsuki giving her an amused look and said, "I didn't know Natsuki-chan is interested in treasure hunting."

"Good morning Viola-san, we..."

Shizuru interrupted Natsuki's greeting, "Ara, why is Natsuki so formal. Call me Shizuru ne, Natsuki." Shizuru teased. She never expected to see Natsuki here while tracking for Shiho.

The talisman which Shizuru managed to attach onto Shiho's dress allowed her to track Shiho's where about using a device that resembled a compass. Just like a compass, the device has a needle attached at the center and will rotate left and right to guide Shizuru to the location of the target. The compass has directed Shizuru to Fuuka Forest Reserve.

While trying to locate the exact location of Shiho, she came across Natsuki whom she thought she would never see again. She had almost forgotten the blue hair beauty since the last time she saw her outside Oji-sama's office. But it is good to see her again.

"Ahem.." Natsuki cleared her throat again, trying desperately to hide her bashfulness. She was not used to first name basis with a stranger whom she had only met once. _And why in the world is she always so friendly with me!?_ Natsuki thought, exasperated by Shizuru's friendliness.

"Good morning Shizuru-san. Unfortunately we are in the middle of a case and unauthorised personnel are not allowed to stay and observe the investigation."

"Kanina Natsuki. I didn't realize that you are in the middle of an investigation." Shizuru sounded apologetic but her eyes were filled with merriment. "I will not..."

Shizuru's sentence was interrupted when one of the policeman who was digging on the ground straighten and reported, "Madam, we have located the item."

"Very good." Natsuki immediately turned to the policeman, totally focused on the job at hand, nearly forgetting that Shizuru was here. "Thank you officer. Please call the forensic team as well."

_A serious woman is a beautiful woman._ Shizuru though, studying Natsuki's side profile.

Natsuki walked forward to take a closer look at the bundle in the ground. Natsuki took out a plastic glove from her back pocket and put it on her right hand. She flipped open the cloth and there it was, a skull resting on a pile of bones. Natsuki gently took up the skull and examined it carefully.

"Hahaha..." A high pitched giggle was heard coming from behind Natsuki's left ear.

Caught by surprise, Natsuki turned immediately to her left.

"Who was it?" Natsuki asked with a deep frown on her face. But there was nobody standing behind her.

Tsumugiya Ichinose, Mai, Arkira-kun and Shizuru-san were all standing all her right side and Natsuki was sure that none of them would make such a girlish giggle.

"What's wrong, Lt Kuga?" Mai asked, puzzled by Natsuki's sudden outburst.

"Nothing. I thought I just heard a giggle. Maybe I was wrong." Natsuki shrugged off the feeling that someone was staring at her.

Shizuru arched her eyebrows upon hearing Natsuki's reply. _Natsuki is quite a sensitive person to able to hear that_.

"Tsumugiya Ichinose, is this Munakata Shiho's remain?" Natsuki pointed to the bag of skeleton and asked.

"Yes. Its...its Munakata Shiho's remain." Tsumugiya Ichinose fidgeted on the spot.

Ever since the policeman dug up the bundle, Tsumugiya had been a bundle of nerves and Natsuki had the predomination that Tsumugiya might just broke off and run. Added to that, Natsuki had a sense of foreboding. Something bad might prevent that, Natsuki gestured to another policeman to stand closer to Tsumugiya.

_Shiho's remain? So if her remain was here, then her spirit should be somewhere nearby._ Shizuru thought.

"I see that Natsuki is busy now. I shall not disturb you." Shizuru interrupted Natsuki's thought and said.

Natsuki gave Shizuru a nod and then turned to focus on the case on hand when suddenly the daylight dimmed.

It was totally unexpected. The once clear sunny sky was now obscured by thick dark clouds. And the bright sky turned dark and gloomy.

Everyone looked up at the sky with a frown on their face. It was bright and sunny just now. But now the whole sky was dark just like it would have been at 6.30pm in the evening. And the temperature seemed to have dropped too.

"Its getting cold all of a sudden." Mai said as she rubbed her arms with her hands trying to warm herself up.

"Something is not right." Akira spoke up as she cocked her head trying to figure out what is wrong. She felt a bit uneasy.

"It might rain soon. So we should quickly move the bag of skeleton and find ourselves a shelter." Natsuki suggested and bended down to pick up the bundle with her gloved hand.

Natsuki agreed with Akira - something is not right. The once bright morning is now dark and gloomy. And the hair on her neck was standing on ends.

As she picked up the bundle. Natsuki recalled Tsumugiya's words during the interrogation. - Munakata's ghost is haunting him.

But this is not the time to say anything more that would frighten Tsumugiya. Any more hocus pocus and he might just bolt, given the fidgety state that Tsumugiya is in now. And anyway, ghost doesn't exist. This was what Natsuki thought.

_Ara, Shiho has managed to gain the power to manipulate the environment. She is either stronger than I expected or she has some help. But either way, it seems that I have underestimated her.' _Shizuru mused._ 'I wonder if I have brought enough ammunition. But we have some policemen-san with us. I wonder what Shiho would do next. _Shizuru decided to adopt the wait-and-see attitude.

"Let's go guys." Natsuki said. "Would you would like to join us as well, Shizuru-san. It is dark now so it might not be safe for a woman to wonder around in the Reserve with no one to accompany you."

"Natsuki is so kind and it is always nice to have someone beautify for company." Shizuru replied giving Natsuki a smile.

"And you would have thought that Nst-su-ki is the only human here." Mai mumbled beneath her breathe. "Hello, we are here too."

Natsuki rolled her eyes at Mai and ignored her to lead the way out of the forest.

* * *

30 minutes had passed and they were still in the Reserve.

"We are back at the same spot again." Natsuki said after arriving at the same place for the fifth times - the place where they discovered Munakata Shiho's remain.

Everyone was feeling uneasy. They had no idea why they kept returning to the same place again and again. They followed the route which was supposed to lead them to the main entrance but each time, the route led them back here. It seems that they were travelling in circle.

"We shouldn't have dug up her remains. We...we shouldn't...And..And I shouldn't bring you all here. I shouldn't have done it." Tsumugiya Ichinose muttered to himself.

"Shut up Tusmugiya. Nobody asks for your comment." The taller policeman commented. He was feeling twitchy about this whole situation.

Akira too was tensed up as well. Her hands were constantly near her hips so that she could drew her gun if anything is wrong. She knew they were travelling on the right path but each time the path led them back to where they originally started. Someone or something might have distorted their sense of direction.

"We will try the other route this time." Natsuki ignored Tsumugiya's mumbling and continued the search for the exit. She does not believe Shiho's ghost is involved in this. _There is no such thing as ghost. Period._

"Alright guys let's follow Lt Kuga." Mai added to get the whole group moving. Natsuki is hemling the front while she anchored the back. She too was worried about this whole situation.

"You look quite relax Viola-san." Mai commented as she gave Shizuru a sideway glance. She had been observing this lady ever since Shizuru stumbled upon them extracting Munataka Shiho's remain. She was one cool lady. Constantly cool, calm and compose, even in such situation.

"Ara Mai-san, I am just confident in the ability of the members of Fuuka Police Headquarter. And please call me Shizuru."

She was also one hell of a liar. And she was interested in Natsuki. Just looked at her. Ever since Shizuru stumbled upon them, her eyes had always been on Natsuki, following her everywhere. But what Mai couldn't determine was in what way was she interested in Natsuki. Was she interested in Natsuki as a friend? A lover or an interesting toy? Mai find it hard to decipher Shizuru's action. There is more to Shizuru than what everyone sees.

"Then I should really thank you on behalf of the Fuuka Police Headquarter." Mai replied. "Tell me Shizuru-san, you have been looking at Natsuki for a very long time. Are you interested in her?" Mai shoot right from the hip.

"Ara, Mai is so forward. Natsuki is a very pretty lady and everyone will be interested to know a pretty lady." _Has she really been staring at Natsuki for a very long time?_ Shizuru wondered. _Naughty of her to be distracted by pretty lady when she should be concentrating on finding Shiho. _

_Damn! She was not answering my question!_ _Slippery as an eel_. "I see." Given that she was unable to dig information out from Shizuru, Mai lost all interest in Shizuru and instead focused on the route ahead.

It was about another 10-15 minutes when they returned to the same spot which they started.

"Damn! What the hell is this!" The taller policeman spat onto the ground. Growing more and more desperate each time they returned to the same spot. They had been doing this again and again. If this continues, they were going to be trapped here forever and died here.

Everyone was a bundle of nerve except for Shizuru, who stood there in serenity.

"We can check our phones!" The idea struck and Mai suggested it out loud.

"I don't have any reception. What about you Lt Tokiha? The rest?" Natsuki asked looking at her I-phone.

"No. Me too, no reception..." Mai sighed.

The rest too gave a nil reply.

Looks like phone doesn't work here.

"Shit!" The taller officer cursed as he ran his fingers through his already unruly hair.

"Officer, please control your language!" Mai warned him.

"We will take a rest for 10 minutes first." Natsuki ordered - to give everyone a break and time to eased the tension and fear that started to spread among the group as they struggled to find their way out.

Everyone was seated, taking a break from all the walking.

Suddenly, Natsuki sat up straight and asked, "Did you hear that?"

Shizuru arched her brow.

"Hear what?" Mai asked.

"Sound. Can you hear sound of trumpet?" Natsuki repeated and stood up from her seated position. _Why would there be sound of trumpet in the Reserve? Could there be someone who could direct us out of this Reserve?_

"Hmm...I didn't hear anything." Mai replied.

The already dark sky darkened further. Sunlight had been totally obscured.

"Listen carefully." Natsuki urged.

Everyone stood to attention trying to catch the sound which Natsuki mentioned.

A few seconds passed by and the sound of trumpet became louder. Sound of trumpet could be heard coming from two different directions.

Just as the sound grew louder, a cold mist started to descend upon the forest. Natsuki shivered as the mist grew thicker. Her sense of foreboding grew stronger. The sun was high up in the sky when they entered the forest. But now it is dark as night time and this sudden cold mist that appeared out of nowhere.

Going with her intuition, Natsuki commented, "Gather close everyone."

Without any resistant, everyone stood to gather in a circle with Tsumugiya Ichinose, the two uniformed policemen and Shizuru in the middle of the circle.

"You two ensure Tsumugiya's safety." Natsuki signaled to the two uniform policeman to guard Tsumugiya. "And I will protect Shizuru-san."

"Ara, thank you Natsuki." Shizuru replied.

Without looking at Shizuru, Natsuki could clearly guess from hearing that Shizuru's eyes must be filled with amusement. _For some reasons, Shizuru-san likes to keep teasing me. _

Her thought was once again distracted by Tsumugiya Ichinose.

"I knew it! I knew it! Hahaha...Munakata, Munakata Shiho is here... She is here to take her revenge...hahaha" Tsumigiya Ichinose broke out in a hysteric laugh. "We are all gonna die. Die!"

Tsumugiya Ichinose's words created a sense of unease among the people.

The sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder.

_Ara, Shiho what are you going to do? Surprise me ne..._Shizuru's crimson iris darkened in anticipation and a smile pulled at her lips.

"Shit! What hell is this!" The tall policeman exclaimed pointing to the North, capturing everyone's attention. .

A group of eleven people were moving towards them amidst the cold mist, wearing all red. Out of the ten people, two men were playing the traditional chinese trumpets while another two were using the cymbals. And among the rest, four of them were grinning joyously and carrying a sedan chair that was decorated with red sash. The remaining two ladies too were smiling happily and holding onto a basket, throwing red pieces of paper into the air. And heading the group was a man in black with a red sash tied around his upper body.

"My god. What is that? And what are they doing?" The policeman repeated once again.

Everyone watched seemingly stupefied by what they saw.

Shizuru on the other hand watched the happening in fascination.

"It looks like a marriage ceremony." Akira broke the silence capturing everyone's attention.

"I think it is a marriage ceremony because..." Akira took a breath and continued. "Look at the costume. It is traditionally worn by the Chinese. In the traditional Chinese culture, when the bride gets married, she will sit in a red sedan chair carried by four servants and accompanied by a band which will play throughout the journey as they deliver the bride to the groom's house. Look at those people." Akira gestured to them. "Many of them are wearing a red costume and red means prosperity and happiness in the Chinese tradition. So when the Chinese marries, the servant would wear red to celebrate the occasion. Look at the sedan as well. It is also decorated with red sash to celebrate the occasion. And the man in wearing all black. He is likely to the groom because look at his attire. He wears black but he had a red sash forming an "X" in front of him, tying a red ribbon in front of his chest. That is the attire of the groom. But...there is something weird about this..." Akira's word trailed off.

"Oh god...Look at those people were pale. They are too pale to be considered humanly possible!" The tall policeman pointed out. "And looked at them, shit! Did you see that! They are not walking! They are...they are freaking floating a feet above the ground!" He stumbled backwards, backing away from the oncoming group.

"Erm...guys...guys, look to the South please. I think we have some trouble..." Mai pointed out.

"Shit!" Natsuki turned to look at the direction and cursed. This is the first time she experienced this.

They needed no interpretation of it this time.

There was another group of 'people' moving towards them and the cold mist surrounded them. This group were wearing white and in contrast to the other group, were weeping. Four men in white were carrying a wooden coffin while another two men were playing the chinese trumpet. Leading the pack were two women and two men. They were weeping loudly and on their hands were stacks of joss paper and burning joss stick. Occasionally they would threw the joss paper into the sky. It was a wake service.

Just liked the previous group, they were not walking. They are floating one feet above the ground.

And both groups were moving towards them!

"Die...we are all going to die...Die...die...die..." Tsumugiya Ichinose mumbled loud enough for everyone to hear.

Shizuru narrowed her eyes upon seeing the two groups. _This is the worse case scenario - clashes of the white and the red. _Shizuru thought. _What is Shiho trying to do?_

Red worn on human being signify prosperity and happiness while white signify death. One should never wear white to a wedding ceremony and red to a wake. If someone in his/her family has a upcoming wedding ceremony, he/she should never attend a wake service. Similarly, if anyone in his/her family passes away, her/she should never attend a wedding ceremony. Happiness and Sadness; Start of a new journey and the end of a journey, the extreme end of human experience. One thus should never come into contact with another.

"Draw your weapons everyone!" Natsuki commanded as she drew the police issued 22 Glock gun and pointed to the oncoming groups. "Do NOT fire yet! What for my instruction!"

"What are we waiting for? They are obviously not human!" The taller officer screamed and pointed his gun toward the group in white, emptying his rounds at them.

Repeated gunshots could be heard ringing through the forest.

Each shot the policeman dealt out went through those 'people'.

Fear spread throughout the the group of humans.

The sound of trumpets and the sound of weeping grew louder and louder, clearer and clearer. Both groups were moving towards them at an increasing speed.

_Ara, should I intervene now or should I wait? _Shizuru watched calmly as the two groups drew closer and closer.

Natsuki watched in horror as the two groups of red and white clashed towards them.

_SHIT! _That was the last thing on her mind before she blackout.

* * *

Natsuki slowly regained conscious. She opened her eyes and saw complete darkness. Where the hell am I? She was trapped in some small dark confine space, too small for her fully stretched out her hands but long and wide enough to fit her whole body. For a moment, she panic. Her breath quickened as memories of her father locking her up in small dark rooms for hours just to punish her filled her mind. The memory nearly threaten to overwhelm her as she struggled to refocused her attention. Natsuki's heavy breathing was loud in the small space. It took her awhile before she finally calmed herself down and focused on getting herself out of this confinement.

"Anyone out there! Hello! Can anyone hear me? I am trapped here!" Natsuki banged her fist against the wooden top hoping she could gain some attention.

* * *

Shizuru glanced around, finding herself seated in the red sedan. "Ara it seems that I am currently seated in the red sedan." She chuckled softly totally oblivion to the fact that she could be in danger. "I never knew ghost could have such good taste in woman - to choose a beautiful woman like me as a bride. Hmm...should I do now? Or should I wait and see where they are going?"

Just as when Shizuru was contemplating her decision, a muffled shout came from beneath her seat, followed by banging.

"Anyone out there! Hello! Can anyone hear me? I am trapped here!"

This startled Shizuru for a while before she quickly recovered her usual calm demeanor. Natsuki is beneath me? Under the sedan? She bended down and knocked on the base of the sedan. The base was hollow. Natsuki could be hidden beneath the sedan.

"Hello!" Another muffled shout.

"Natsuki? Is that you? Can you hear me?" Shizuru raised her voice loud enough to be heard by Natsuki.

_To be continued..._

**Omake:**

30 minutes had passed and they were still in the Reserve.

"We are back at the same spot again." Natsuki said after arriving at the same place for the fifth times - the place where they discovered Munakata Shiho's remain.

Everyone was feeling uneasy. They had **an** idea why they kept returning to the same place again and again - Natsuki had no sense of direction! But nobody dared to voice it out unless they are tired of living. It seems that Natsuki had led them to travel in circle.

"We shouldn't have let Lt Kuga led the way. We...we shouldn't...And..And I shouldn't bring you all here. I shouldn't have done it." Tsumugiya Ichinose muttered to himself.

"We will try the other route this time." Natsuki ignored Tsumugiya's mumbling and continued the search for the exit.

One hour later...

Natsuki and the rest were still stuck in the Reserved.

Do drop me a review if you like it :)


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. (Though I wish I do)

Summary:

Have you ever heard of Black Magic? What do you know about it? Do they really exist in the first place?

Natsuki is a rising star in the Fuka Police Headquater who always solves her case based on logic, facts and evidence. However, her understanding of the world is turned upside down when she meets Shizuru. Shizuru lives in a world that can never be defined by logic and facts. The things she dealt with are beyond scientific understanding. What would happen when the two meet? And it seems that someone wanted Natsuki and Shizuru to meet each other but not for a good reason.

* * *

**Previously in chapter 5:**

Natsuki slowly regained conscious. She opened her eyes and saw complete darkness. _Where the hell am I? _She was trapped in some small dark confine space, too small for her fully stretched out her hands but long and wide enough to fit her whole body. For a moment, she panic. Her breath quickened as memories of her father locking her up in small dark rooms for hours just to punish her filled her mind. The memory nearly threaten to overwhelm her as she struggled to refocused her attention. Natsuki's heavy breathing was loud in the small space. It took her awhile before she finally calmed herself down and focused on getting herself out of this confinement.

"Anyone out there! Hello! Can anyone hear me? I am trapped here!" Natsuki banged her fist against the wooden top hoping she could gain some attention.

Shizuru glanced around, finding herself seated in the red sedan. "Ara it seems that I am currently seated in the red sedan." She chuckled softly totally oblivion to the fact that she could be in danger. "I never knew ghost could have such good taste in woman - to choose a beautiful woman like me as a bride. Hmm...should I do now? Or should I wait and see where they are going?"

Just as when Shizuru was contemplating her decision, a muffled shout came from beneath her seat, followed by banging.

"Anyone out there! Hello! Can anyone hear me? I am trapped here!"

This startled Shizuru for a while before she quickly recovered her usual calm demeanor. _Natsuki is beneath me? Under the sedan? _She bended down and knocked on the base of the sedan. _The base was hollow. Natsuki could be hidden beneath the sedan._

"Hello!" Another muffled shout.

"Natsuki? Is that you? Can you hear me?" Shizuru raised her voice loud enough to be heard by Natsuki.

* * *

**Chapter 6**

"Shizuru!? Yes, its me, Natsuki! Shizuru, could you help me get out of this...this tight space?" Natsuki let out a sigh of relief, knowing that rescue is here.

"Alright, let's see what I can do." Shizuru put her hand into the pocket of her bermuda shorts and took out a Swiss Army pocket pen knife. She flipped out the blade and stucked it into the gap between the base and the wall of the sedan. Using her strength, she pried open a part of the base and managed to remove a plank of wood from the base of the sedan. Through the open space, she saw Natsuki's pale face. She was lying horizontally beneath the sedan. "Are you alright Natsuki? You look a bit pale." Shizuru frowned.

"Yeah I...I am fine. Just a bit suffocating in that tight space. Can you help me out Shizuru-san?"

Shizuru held out a hand to help Natsuki out as Natsuki maneuvered her body so that she could squeeze through the small opening created by Shizuru. Natsuki heaved a sigh of relief when she was not longer lying in the tight space but instead standing face to face with Shizuru.

"Thanks!" Natsuki said, looking up to face Shizuru. Then Natsuki's eyes widened as she realized that she was too close to Shizuru. Their faces were just inch apart.

"Shit! " Natsuki exclaimed, jerking her head back. Unfortunately, the small sedan did not allow for large movement and Natsuki hit the back of her head hard against the sedan's wall. "Ouch! That freaking hurts! Ouch..." Natsuki rubbed the throbbing wound.

Shizuru chuckled at Natsuki's reaction. _She is cute._

Natsuki's face reddened immediately. "Sorry 'bout it." She apologized. "Erhem...ermm...Shizuru-san, why are you here?"

"Why am I here? Ara, I have no idea. I was knocked unconscious earlier on and when I woke up, I am here in the sedan." Shizuru shrugged, completely nonchalant about the current situation.

"Crap! Don't tell me we are trapped in this sedan." Natsuki cursed and tried to forced open the door of the sedan. The door refused to budge.

"We have a problem here." Natsuki said after a few failed attempts to open the door.

"Ara, we have?" Shizuru asked, tilting her head sideway in question.

"Yes! We have! We are taken for some reasons and trapped in this...this sedan." Natsuki gestured to the space around them. "And we need to get out and find the rest. If I am not wrong, we are in a moving sedan and it is carrying us to somewhere."

Natsuki tried forcing open the door of the sedan again but to no avail.

"Kannina, I didn't realize that my company is not needed here and Natsuki wants to find someone else to accompany her." Shizuru feigned distressed.

"No! No, I don't mean that! Listen, I don't mean..." Natsuki turned to face Shizuru and shook her head in denial.

Shizuru chuckled.

Realizing that she had been tricked, Natsuki growled. "Shizuru-san! This is not the time to joke around!"

"Hahaha...Kannina Natsuki. Accept my apologies ne." Shizuru paused before continuing. "Let me atone for my sin by getting both of us out of here ne Nat-su-ki." Shizuru pleaded, placing both her palms together and gave Natsuki an impish smile.

"Well... you look like you have an idea. So let's try it." Natsuki replied.

_Shizuru looked cute just now. _Natsuki recalled how Shizuru looked when she had her palms together and a mischievous smile on her face. _Though she can be quite mischievous at times and likes to tease me. _She thought in resignation.

"Ne Natsuki, whatever you see later, don't be too shock ne..." Shizuru gave Natsuki a teasing smile and winked.

"Ermm...al..alright." _How shocking can it be? Right? _

Shizuru put the tip of her forefinger and middle finger into her mouth and gave it a bite, allowing blood to ooze out from the wound on her fingers. Using her blood, she wrote a series of ancient words on the sealed door of the sedan and then placed her right palm over the wordings. Shizuru then uttered, "Exorcise!"

To Natsuki's surprise, the door flung off the handle and landed a distance away from the sedan. Natsuki turned her head slowly to look at Shizuru, her mouth wide open.

"Ara, I told Natsuki to be mentally prepared." Shizuru said and leaped out of the sedan, landing gracefully on the ground.

Shizuru's action created a huge commotion.

There was animal-like screeches coming from all direction outside the sedan.

The sedan which Natsuki was in started to wobble and then it toppled forward. This caused unprepared Natsuki to tumble out from the collapsing sedan. Unlike Shizuru, Natsuki landed clumsily on all four with her ass tucked high up in the air.

"Ara ara, though I would really like to look at your tight little bun but don't you think we should find a more appropriate time Natsuki?" Shizuru chided and gave Natsuki's bun a light tap.

This caused Natsuki to picked herself up immediately. She turned and faced Shizuru with a tomato-colour face. "Ba..baka! Don't say such weird thing!"

_Did she do what I thought she did to my ass? Ba...baka...Shizuru-san is not that type of person. _

"Careful Natsuki!" Shizuru pulled Natsuki towards her so that Natsuki would stand behind her.

This woke Natsuki up as she focused on the scene before her. She took in the surrounding.

And there it was, the red sedan which Shizuru and her were trapped in earlier on. But the sedan was resting on top of the coffin.

A chill ran up her spin.

So the small space which she was initially trapped in was a coffin. And the sedan which held Shizuru was resting on top of the coffin.

_Shit! That was creepy!_

The coffin and sedan were resting on the shoulders of those people in red wedding costume and white funeral attire. The group were travelling towards the direction of the river that runs through the Fuuka Forest Reserved. And Natsuki wondered if those people had planned to drown Natsuki and Shizuru in the river. If that is the case, they would have been dead if Shizuru was any minutes slower in forcing open the sedan's door.

"Stand behind me Natsuki." Shizuru said and took out a black metal bar that was tucked at the back of her bermuda. She then swung her arm and a silver metal blade slipped out from the metal bar.

It was a retractable sword.

"You are not the one that I'm after! So leave now before I kill you." Shizuru warned as she took a step forward.

"You can't go around killing people!" Natsuki clamped her hands over Shizuru's to stop her.

"Ara, Natsuki is always so kind. But Natsuki must have noticed something rather strange with them right?" Shizuru gestured towards those people who were gathering in circle around them.

"But..." Natsuki hesitated. It was true that they were strange. Just like what they noticed earlier on in the forest (Chapter 5), their face was too pale to be considered human. And most importantly, they were all floating 1 feet avoid the ground. But Natsuki's logical brain just find it hard to accept that paranormal beings exist.

As if reading Natsuki's mind, Shizuru said, "Natsuki, they are not human. They are spirits or what people normally termed it as ghost. And now they are out to get us. I will explain it to Natsuki later ne. For now, trust me." Shizuru smiled before turning to face the groups of spirits in front of them.

The spirits in front of them raised their sharp black claws and bared their teeth at Shizuru, glaring at her with hatred.

One of the spirits let out a sharp screech and charged towards them.

"Hold on to this talisman. This will protect you." Shizuru said and passed a triangular shape talisman to Natsuki.

Shizuru raised her sword and thrusted it towards the oncoming spirit in red. In response to that, the spirit used its long claws to block the blade.

It was a clash between the sword and claw and an ear piercing sound resulted.

The forceful thrust of the blade sent the screeching spirit flying before landing motionless a few meters away from Shizuru. It took the spirits a few minutes to get back on its feet. But having tasted the pain of the blade, it was rather hesitant to approach Shizuru and her sword again, circling by the side and observing the situation with its beady eyes.

Having sent the spirit flying, Shizuru turned to another spirit on her right and pierced the sword through its body. The spirit let out a loud screech and collapsed onto the ground writhing in pain before evaporating off, leaving a dark shadow shaped of a human on the floor.

By now the spirits had realized that they were weak against Shizuru's blade.

Having seen how Shizuru took care of the 2 spirits, the remaining ones that surrounded them were hesitant to approach Shizuru and Natsuki.

Not planning to stop, Shizuru took out a stack of coins from her back pockets, fan it out and threw it into the air.

"Bestow me your power Kiyohime, attack!" Shizuru chanted.

The coins that were thrown into the air morphed into red arrows, shooting straight into the spirits' body. The faces of the spirits contorted in pain as they withered on the ground and evaporated leaving behind black shadows on the ground.

"I told you didn't I? To leave before you are killed." Shizuru said softly before turning to Natsuki with a smile on her face. "Ne Natsuki, were you scared just now?"

"Nat-su-ki? Natsuki?" Shizuru repeated waving her hands in front of Natsuki.

It took Natsuki a while and several blinking on Natsuki's side before she was able to react to Shizuru's question. "My God! What the hell just happened!?"

Shizuru chuckled. "Natsuki, you must learn to speak in a more ladylike manner. Let's go and find the rest Natsuki."

Shizuru grasped Natsuki's hand and started leading the way.

"Wait, you have not explained anything to me yet." Natsuki covered Shizuru's hand with hers to get Shizuru's attention.

"Don't worry, I promise you I will explain everything to you after I find Shiho." Shizuru assured. "But I am going to bring you to find the rest of your friends first. I am afraid that Shiho might do harm to your friends."

"What? Mai might be in danger?"

"Ara, Natsuki is worried about Mai-san. Are the two of you very close?"

"Answer my question Shizuru!"

"Don't worry, Mai-san will be safe. However I can't say the same for the man in the handcuff."

"Shit! That is just as bad. Let's go and find them now." Natsuki grabbed Shizuru's hand this time and lead the way, forgetting that she had dropped the honorific for Shizuru's name.

"Listen to me first Natsuki. Shiho had cast a spell to disrupt our sense of direction. We won't be able to find them based on our own sense of direction. But I have a way so listen and follow me." Shizuru intertwined their fingers and led the way.

* * *

On the other side where they found Munakata Shiho's remain.

"Go away! Get the hell away from me you bitches!" Tsumugiya Ichinose screamed as he waved the gun at Akira and Mai.

Mai was kneeling on the ground and barely conscious. Her face contorted with pain as she pressed her hands on her bleeding wound by the side of her stomach. Akira was standing in front of Mai shielding her from Tsumigiya.

"Alright calm down Tsumugiya. Calm down. We are not going to hurt you alright?" Akira moderated her tone in an attempt to ease the tension in Tsumigiya.

"Tsumugiya? Yes, Tsumugiya look at me. Listen to me." Akira tried again attempting to gain Tsumugiya's attention. But he was looking at everywhere instead of Akira.

"Munataka Shiho? Munataka Shiho! Get the hell away from me...Go away!" Tsumugiya Ichinose shrieked and pointed the gun in all directions, firing wildly.

Akira immediately turned to shield Mai with her body.

* * *

A distance away, Natsuki's face paled when she heard the multiple gunshots. She quickly picked up speed and ran towards the source with Shizuru in tow behind her.

Just as they reached the clearing, they saw Tsumugiya Ichinose tripped and fell backwards into the river, swallowed by the strong current.

"Shit!" Natsuki muttered and sprinted towards the river. "Tsumugiya-san!" Natsuki shouted trying to identify Tsumugiya amidst the current but Tsumugiya was nowhere in sight.

"Kuga! Mai is shot! We need to get her to the hospital now!" Natsuki's attention was captured by Akira's words.

"What? Mai, Mai!" Natsuki immediately took off to where Akira and Mai were.

Natsuki quickly took in the whole situation - Mai was barely conscious from bleeding wound while the two other uniform policemen were lying unconscious a few feet away.

"Akira-kun, call the ambulance!" Natsuki ordered as she laid Mai on the ground and pulled off her own jacket to stem the flow of blood.

"I can't Kuga. There is no signal on my phone. So are the rest." Akira replied, frustrated.

"Shit!" Natsuki paused to think for a while before turning to Shizuru. "Shizuru! Shizuru, you have a solution right? Can you help me?"

"Crushed this pill and applied it to her wound. It might slow down the blood loss." Shizuru said and threw a brown colour pill into Natsuki's hand. She then walked towards the bundle of skeleton which Natsuki left before they were taken by the spirits.

Standing in front of the bundle, Shizuru looked up into surrounding and said, "Shiho, undo the spell now."

"Hahaha..." A girlish giggle echoed throughout the forest.

"Don't force me Shiho! Undo the spell now!" Shizuru commanded once again.

But silence followed.

"Stubborn!" Shizuru said and took out a talisman. She held it between her forefinger and middle finger. "Burn!" And immediately the talisman burst in flame and Shizuru threw the burning talisman onto the bundle of skeleton.

Natsuki who who was watching a distance away was completely dumbfounded.

_Did Shizuru just command a fire?_

The bundle burst into flame quickly. An ear-piercing scream sounded through the forest.

And with just a blink of an eye, a lady in red stood in front of Shizuru.

"Shiho, you should have come out without forcing me to resort to the fire" Shizuru said.

Instead of replying, Shiho raised her arms with her fingers arched into a claw and moved towards Shizuru at an amazing speed. Her face contorted in anger. Her once sweet disposition was gone and was replaced with anger and hatred towards Viola Yuiichi and the Viola family. _Die! Die! Kill Viola! Every Viola! _Those were the thoughts that ran through Shiho's mind.

Shizuru took out the black metal bar and with a swing the blade slide out to block Shiho's attack. Pushing Shiho back, Shizuru thrusted her sword towards Shiho but Shiho managed to evade the attack. In retaliation, Shiho swiped out with her long and dark claws at Shizuru's right shoulder, forcing Shizuru to turn 360 degree to her left to avoid the attack.

Once again face to face with Shiho, Shizuru took a coin with her free hand and threw it towards Shiho like a dart, catching Shiho on her sleeves and pulled her backwards until she was nailed to a tree.

Shiho struggled to move forward and detach herself from the tree but to no success. She opened her mouth wide and screamed, forcing everyone to covered their ears.

"Unrepented." Shizuru retracted her sword and took out an origami star made of yellow colour talisman and threw it into the air. While in midair, the origami star unfolded itself into a large talisman and flew towards Shiho before dissolving itself into her body.

Shiho started in astonishment as the talisman entered her body. It took awhile before she started to writhe in pain, letting out piercing screams.

The area around her started warping and a bright red light appeared from within Shiho's body. The red light became brighter and brighter, blinding almost everyone.

The light finally dimmed and in Shiho's place was a small red star.

Just as when Shiho disappeared, the sky cleared and light once again shined through the forest. Warm to spread throughout the area.

Shizuru walked towards the small red star and picked it up, placing it into a small test tube.

Then she turned and saw Natsuki staring at her with her jaw slacked. Shizuru's eyes lighted up with merriment and said,"Ara, Natsuki are you so memorize with me that you forgot to call for ambulance?"

Natsuki immediately snapped to attention and turned to Akira "Akira-kun? Akira-kun, call for the ambulance now!"

Natsuki's command snapped Akira into attention. She instinctively took out her phone and dialed for an ambulance mechanically. What she saw just now was beyond her normal understanding. But this was not the time for her to puzzled over it. Mai was more important now and Takumi, that sis-con, was going to be very upset about his sister getting hurt.

Natsuki had her hands firmly pressed against Mai's wound. Mai was unconscious now but her bleeding had slowed after she applied the medication given by Shizuru. For that she was thankful to Shizuru.

She had been too focused on Shizuru and Mai just now that she nearly forgot about the other two policemen. As she scan through the area, she saw the two of them were lying unconscious on the ground and heaved a sigh of relief._ Well at least they were not bleeding._

Though she had many questions she wanted to ask Shizuru, but she could wait.

It took about 10 minutes before three ambulances came and took Mai and the two policemen with them. Natsuki's eyes clouded with concerned as the paramedics pushed Mai into the ambulance. Akira had been assigned to follow Mai to the hospital while Natsuki stayed to manage the scene. She wanted to follow the ambulances if she could but she can't. Her responsibility as the leader of this team was to manage the crime scene and organize a search team to look for Tsumugiya Ichinose.

Natsuki was organizing for a search party for Ichinose when she saw Captain Kaiji Sakomizu stepping out of his car. His Afro hair stood out from a distance. Natsuki always thought that his Afro hair really looked ridiculous and totally not suited for him. But she never had the guts to tell him. Not unless she is prepared to be punished.

_Well he looked spitting mad and he is after me. Shit! _Natsuki thought as she watched Kaiji Sakomizu stomped towards her. She could clearly see his dark face from a distance.

"Lt Kuga Natsuki!" Kaiji Sakomizu roared.

"Yes Sir!" Natsuki saluted.

"Tell me, why is one of my lieutenant bleeding and the suspect missing?"

"My apologies Sir!"

"Apologies not accepted! I want Tsumugiya Ichinose caught and the case solved! Understood?"

"Yes Sir!"

"And I want your report in within 24 hours."

_Shit! _

Natsuki watched as Sakomizu walked off the crime scene and disappeared into the distance.

"Alright boys, you heard the boss. Get your ass moving! I want Tsumugiya Ichinose found ASAP! Move, move, move!" Natsuki watched as groups of men moved off in different directions with their dobermans on leashed.

She planned for the team to search for Tsumugiya via land, water and air. On land, they will be using dobermans to search for Tusmugiya Ichinose. In air, helicopters while on water, they used boat. Hopefully they could find Tsumugiya Ichinose soon. Tsumugiya Ichinose was holding on to a gun belonging to one of the policeman when he fell into the river. A suspect running around Fuuka with a loaded gun is dangerous.

Having dispatched the team, Natsuki turned to Shizuru and said, "Alright Shizuru-san, unless you are deaf, you heard my boss. He wants a report from me within 24 hours. So I need you to talk."

There was a moment of silence before Shizuru placed her face into her palms and sobbed"Nat...Natsuki is so...so mean. Just now Natsuki was calling me Shizuru but now she goes all formal on me and call me Shizuru-san. She even command me to talk."

Shizuru weeped, loud enough to catch the attention of the surrounding policemen and forensic scientists.

Natsuki turned around and glared at those officers and scientists - a Kuga Natsuki signature glare.

Alright, they got the signal - do their work and mind their own business.

Natsuki turned back and looked at Shizuru, totally at a loss.

"No, I... I... I don't mean it that way." Natsuki stuttered.

Shizuru weeped on.

Natsuki finally gave up and blurt out, "Shi...Shi...Shizuru!"

Immediately the weeping stopped.

Encouraged by this, Natsuki continued, "Shi...Shizuru, I... I don't mean to command you. Its just that. .. just that. .." Natsuki paused and ran her fingers through her blue hair in frustration. "Its just that Mai was shot just now and the other two officers are unconscious, the suspect is at large and I have no explanation to what had happened just now. Therefore I guess I was kinda abrupt with you just now. I am so...so..."

"Ara..." Shizuru interrupted. "Since Natsuki is nice enough to admit that she is wrong, I will forgive her. But Natsuki must treat me to dinner ne."

"Al...alright." Natsuki agreed. Her face red with embarrassment.

_Ara Natsuki is weak against girls crying._

"Ne...Natsuki..." Shizuru said and took a step closer to Natsuki. They were now cheek to cheek. "Let's find some place where there is only Natsuki and me and no one else to distract us ne." Shizuru whispered into Natsuki' s ear.

"Wh...wha...what are you doing?" Natsuki asked, jerking backwards and covering her ear with both her hands. The tip of her ears were tinted red.

_To be continued..._

* * *

**Omake 1**:

"Natsuki? Is that you? Can you hear me?" Shizuru raised her voice loud enough to be heard by Natsuki.

"Shizuru!? Yes, its me Natsuki. Shizuru, could you help me get out of this...this tight space?" Natsuki let out a sigh of relief.

"Alright, let's see what I can do." Shizuru put her hand into the pocket of her bermuda shorts and took out a...a vibrator?

"Oops! This is not the one. Kannina" Shizuru apologized and dug further into her pocket and took out a bottle with the label, Lubricant for Better Sex Life.

"No, not this one. Where is my pocket knife?" Shizuru mumbled and continued digging.

Next came a pe*is-like stick, a handcuff (?), a feather and a blindfold.

"Kannina Natsuki, I guess I forgot to bring my pocket pen knife today." Shizuru apologized once again. "Natsuki, you there? Natsuki!"

* * *

Do drop me a review if you like the story :)

It really helps to encourage me to write on. Sometimes when life becomes busy and I find it hard to continue writing, I would take a look at the reviews and I would find the motivation to continue the story again. And thank you to those who have left me reviews. Thank you so much :)


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